The
Commandant-General of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC),
Abdullahi Muhammadu, has said that the corps had procured a drone to combat oil
pipeline vandalism, Premium Times reports.
Mr. Muhammadu,
while addressing newsmen in Abuja, noted that the new drone which would be put
to test soon would be enabled with a Global Positioning System (GPS) and fitted
with an infrared camera to document activities of vandals and makes it easier
to prosecute offenders.
“In 2014,
Nigeria lost over N1.2 trillion to oil theft. The government continues to incur
heavy costs in a bid to repair vandalized pipelines. “At the end of 2014, there
was a record loss of 50,000 to 60,000 barrels of oil daily. “We must find new
ways to fight vandalism. NSCDC has now found a new way to fight back,” he said.
Muhammadu also said the drone flies at an
altitude of about 150 meters (492 feet), watches for more than 80 minutes at a
time, and moves quietly through the sky at up to 54km (33 miles) per hour and that the agency’s new procurement would
allow it monitor vast areas in a short period of time.
He said the
unmanned aerial vehicle was designed to document evidence of vandalism and help
the NSCDC apprehend vandals while in action.
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